Watercolors (B.A.)

Chapter Seven

Dali

When Amina woke up the next morning, she felt like an idiot. She never wanted to let people see her like that. Sure, it wasn't the worst panic attack she'd ever had, but the fact that Brandon saw it all caused a bad taste to rise in her mouth.

The day was fairly warm for late September, so she decided her hair should be left in its wash and go state. A drop of water rolled down her neck, despite the time she spent towel drying her thick black locks. By the time her mother pulled up to the school, the collar of Amina's sweater was damp.

She hated walking through the front door of Towson High School. Something about it was so intimidating and unwelcoming. To her surprise though, Nick was waiting for her the minute she opened the doors. Amina jumped in surprise when he called her name.

"Amina!"  A knot formed in the pit of her stomach as he placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Um, hey."

"Hey. Can we talk?"

Amina nodded slowly. She followed Nick through the crowded hallways, walking slightly behind the equally as unpopular boy. He led her to an empty, unlocked classroom. Amina followed him in, and shut the door behind her.

"So Brandon told me what happened yesterday," Nick sighed. "And I honestly just wanted to tell you that I'm sorry if I have been making you uncomfortable. I don't like you like that. Not that you're not a beautiful girl or anything!"

Amina chuckled lightly. "It's okay. Just say what you have to say. You're not gonna offend me."

Nick took a deep breath, running his hands through his hair. "I just want to say I'm sorry if I have ever made you uncomfortable. You and I are friends, and we're close, and I just kind of assumed that us being physically close wasn't an issue. But if it is, I totally understand."

Amina felt her heart swell at Nick's words. No boy that she had ever encountered cared about her feelings that much. She was impressed, definitely. But most importantly, she was touched.

"Nick, the only reason I kind of freaked out yesterday was because Brandon was telling me how everyone thinks you like me. I was just kind of shocked and overwhelmed because I'm not used to dealing with things like that. I'm also not quite ready for a relationship, but that's a separate issue. You don't make me uncomfortable."

Nick cocks an eyebrow. "The hugging doesn't make you uncomfortable?"

"No."

"What about the poking and prodding?"

Amina chuckled. "Not at all. I'm serious! We're good, I think. Or at least I hope!"

A huge smile broke out on Nick's face. He surged over to grab his friend and pull her into a tight hug. Amina couldn't help but smile too. She liked sticking to her promise: her no drama promise. She was happy that her first conflict had been handled, and it was handled well.

—————

Amina spent most of her lunch time like she usually did, tucked under Nick's arm. The cafeteria had an energy today that it didn't normally have. Amina felt happy. A certain buzz surrounded her, and she loved it.

She popped a few sweet potato fries into her mouth, moaning audibly as their salty-sweet flavor filled her mouth. Brandon nudged Amina in her side, raising his eyebrows at her.

"Those must be really good." He fake sighed longingly.

"Is that your way of asking for one?" Amina could feel the sass she got from her mother poking through.